


when i wake up i see (you with me)

by serendiptitty



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Post-Reveal Pre-Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, bowling
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-26
Updated: 2020-07-26
Packaged: 2021-03-05 19:08:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,421
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25520350
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/serendiptitty/pseuds/serendiptitty
Summary: Adrien, Alya, Nino, and Marinette all endure a day of fun festivities, but the real fun begins when they enter the bowling alley.or, the one where Marinette momentarily fakes being bad at bowling so Adrien can teach her.
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Alya Césaire/Nino Lahiffe
Comments: 17
Kudos: 173





	when i wake up i see (you with me)

**Author's Note:**

> ahhhhhhhhhh................. guys...................
> 
> i know... i've been gone for a bit.. life has kinda... taken me and pummeled me to the ground to say the least
> 
> i can't say that the other fics will be updated anytime soon, but i am not abandoning them!!! i love u all and i hope you understand <3
> 
> \- c 
> 
> this is for a donations drive organized by the aps community for Color of Change! If you'd like to donate to pick up any slots that may be left, feel free to visit https://mlbforblm.tumblr.com/ for more information!

Sweat pools around the dip above Marinette’s upper lip, on the sides of her neck, even in the crevasses of her collarbones. The thin crop top she’d picked that morning, albeit usually flowy and light, stuck to her skin in ways that would need a second shower to undo. Her short, slightly baggy denim shorts she’s wearing are holding up pretty well, all things considered, and her feet aren’t hurting from the trendy oxford flats she’s sporting. Her hair, matted at the back of her neck, clings to her rosy cheeks as her fringe does to her forehead. 

Marinette looks and feels like a mess.

Taking Alya’s suggestion of a quick detour to the bathroom to freshen up, Marinette manages to fix her fringe, throwing her hair up into a ponytail and cooling her body down within a matter of minutes. Alya somehow doesn’t sweat nearly as profusely as Marinette, so she’d only needed to touch up her makeup and she’s set to go.

“How do you do it?” Marinette grumbles, using a blotting powder to erase the sheen from her face.

“Do what?” Alya snorts, cleaning up her slightly-smudged eyeliner. 

Marinette huffs, gesturing wildly in Alya’s direction. “Not sweat like a pig? Laser tag makes me so competitive and then  _ gah _ , I look like this!” 

“Genes,” is Alya’s answer, before the taller girl turns to Marinette and fixes her makeup for her, touching up her eyeshadow with her small compact. 

Their bathroom trip ends rather quickly, as the two of them use it for its actual function and leave to find the boys. Alya uses her height to her advantage and spots them fast, grabbing Marinette by the wrist to tug her in their direction. 

“You’re doing good, Mari; you haven’t made a fool of yourself yet. You got this,” Alya whispers teasingly into Marinette’s ear as they find Adrien and Nino setting up the lanes for them, two extra pairs of bowling shoes on one of the chairs. 

“Shut up,” Marinette hisses through a smile, her cheeks bearing the brunt of her embarrassment from Alya’s words. It’s easy for her to swap shoes, them thankfully being a close enough fit to what she usually wears. “How’d you guys know my shoe size?” 

Adrien plops down onto the seat next to her and wraps a loose arm around Marinette’s shoulders. If he notices Marinette tensing up from his close proximity, he chooses to ignore it. “Do you remember that time in secondary when we did the Secret Santa exchange, and we weren’t allowed to reveal who had one another because some of the gifts were, and I quote, “too expensive and will make us all look bad”?” 

Her eyes widen comically. “Wait, _you_ were the one who got me those Saint Laurent boots?! Adrien!” She punches him in the arm. “Those had to have been so expensive! Take them back!” 

“Do you like them?” is his question instead, a goofy smile on his face as he lifts her leg up to rest over his knee so he can tie her shoe for her. 

Marinette’s cheeks tint a deeper shade of red. “Yes, they’re my favorite shoes.” 

Finishing the knot with a bow, he pats her knee and lets her leg fall. “Then it was completely worth it.” 

“Alright, lovebirds, let’s get to bowling. We only have two hours before we lose the lanes and I want to kick all of your asses.” Nino flips his hat backwards and rolls up his sleeves, wiggling his eyebrows. “Should we place bets? Boys against girls?” 

“I’d rather see how good you are first before I wager any money, babe,” Alya says, gently bumping her hip against his. “Maybe, though. Adrien, are you any good at the game?” 

“He’s great, Als. I’ve seen him bowl before and it even scared  _ me _ ,” Nino replies instead, as Adrien rubs the back of his neck sheepishly. “Don’t be so shy, dude! You’re great!” 

Adrien laughs. “Thanks, man. What about you, Mari?” 

Alya jumps in, a smirk on her face. “She’s pretty shit at it. Can’t aim to save her life. You could always teach her?” 

A look of confusion crosses Marinette’s face as Alya sends her a  _ be cool _ expression. Alya’s lying, and Marinette doesn’t understand why. She’s great at bowling and Alya knows this! The redhead always complains about getting destroyed whenever they bowl together. “Y-Yeah! I’m, uh… awful at bowling?” 

“I could teach you!” Adrien’s eyes light up with the world’s biggest smile on his face. “It’ll be fun! I may not be a pro, but I think we could get you bowling straight in no time!” 

Oh.

_ Oh _ . 

Alya was plotting. 

“Sure! Yeah, I think that’ll be a lot of fun!” Marinette somehow gets out, her throat suddenly dry. “I’m going to get us all some drinks while you guys set up the lanes, okay?” 

With that, she jumps up from the seat and rushes over to the dining area, sifting through her shoulder bag for her wallet. Tikki stares up at her with a smirk and winks, only furthering Marinette’s downward spiral. 

“Don’t even,” Marinette whispers, quickly searching to make sure no one saw her talk to her purse. 

Being around Adrien and liking him is hard enough. Being around Adrien and liking him while  _ knowing _ he’s Chat Noir is even harder. Being around Adrien, liking him, knowing he’s Chat Noir and him knowing she’s Ladybug? Absolutely terrifying, especially when they haven’t been able to have an actual conversation since the reveal this morning. 

And It happened  _ so fast _ , right after the akuma attack, where they both cut it so close and accidentally ended up in the same alleyway. She tried to cover her eyes, yet caught a glimpse of his favorite pale yellow  _ Agreste  _ hoodie that she’s stolen a few too many times and would know anywhere. She couldn’t ignore it, or the gasp that left her mouth.

Adrien had better luck in slamming his eyes shut,, but she felt it was unfair to him and told him that it was okay to open his eyes. 

Shocked was a good word for the look on his face, though there wasn’t an ounce of disappointment on his features and for that she was so grateful. 

(“Marinette?” he had whispered, so quietly and gently that her heart nearly stopped. 

“Adrien, yes, it’s me,” she replied back, equally as quiet. 

Not even two seconds later, he was hugging her to his chest, and her heart felt complete.) 

Except, they haven’t physically spoken about it, since she had to leave to go to class and he had meetings to attend. Cue the anxiety rolling in. Chat loved Ladybug, while Marinette loved— _ loves _ Adrien. It may’ve been years ago for him, but it’s still so baffling to her. 

After paying for the drinks, she brings them back to their lanes and smiles brightly as she sees Adrien and Nino dancing weirdly to the music playing throughout the bowling alley. “You guys sure have some sick moves.” 

“I’d love to see you try,” Nino teases, finger prodding her in the arm. 

“No way,” Marinette responds, a small laugh leaving her lips. “I’m awful at dancing, unlike Mr. Big Shot over there.” 

“Ballroom dancing is a lot different than freestyling!” Adrien shrugs, tilting his head down at her. “Anyways, I thought it’d be a good idea that we’re on the same lane since I’m teaching you. You alright with that?” 

She nods slowly, unable to form words from the cute expression he’s sending her. 

“Great!” He takes her by the hand and brings them over to their lane, eyes alit with excitement. “I got you a lighter ball because it’s easier to start with.” 

Marinette’s already mourning the loss of her usual 12-pound ball. “Thank you.” 

“Alright, pick up your ball and c’mere.” He motions for her to move toward him near the start of the lane, grinning as she complies. “We’ll start with the basics. Hold your ball up like you’re getting ready to throw.” 

She does, except she does it poorly since she’s not supposed to know how to play. Her cheeks heat up as he leans over her from behind to inspect her stance, his body heat—even through his hoodie—warming her up significantly. “Like this?” 

“You’re close! That’s good, just relax your shoulders—” His hands smooth over the top of her shoulders and down her arms, lifting them up slightly so they’re bent more. “There, I think that’s better.” 

Her heart’s pounding so fast in her chest right now with how close he is. He smells so good, and it’d be so easy to turn her head to look up at him, maybe lean in and kiss him—

_ Focus _ , Marinette. 

“Thank you,” she chokes out, licking at her dry lips. 

“Of course,” he says, voice slightly raspy, stepping back from her so she—and him, though it’s unbeknownst to her—can finally breathe a little. “Alright, now swing your hand back and throw the ball.” 

Marinette throws the ball towards the pins, slightly off so she knows it’ll hit the corner of the pins instead of any of the center ones. She knocks two of the pins down and Adrien whoops behind her, arms up in the air. “I only knocked two down, you idiot!” 

“Two is better than zero, Mar,” he says with a laugh, wrapping his arms around her and spinning her in the air. “I’m so proud of you!” 

“Put me down, you goof!” She’s aware people are staring at them and she doesn’t even care, the smile on his face is more than enough to have her head feel like she’s floating on a cloud. 

He complies and sets her down, though he keeps his arms around her and holds her against his chest. “You’re such a fast learner, eh?” 

“I have to be honest with you,” she says, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. 

“Mm?” 

“I’m actually  _ really _ good at bowling. Alya knows, but like, I guess she was trying to push us towards one another but I’m an  _ awful _ liar and you just seemed so happy when I even hit two of those pins! So, yeah, I’m sorry.”

“You couldn’t even last  _ one _ frame, Mar?” Alya shouts from where she’s curled up with Nino on the seats, the two of them watching with matching grins. 

Nino cackles. “Awful, the lot of you!” 

“I’m sorry! I just—” 

“You pretended to be bad at bowling so I’d help you? So I could be... close to you?” He tilts his head to the side and grins brightly. “That’s so cute? You should’ve just told me!” 

“Yeah, well, it’s kind of hard to tell the guy you’ve been in love with since you were thirteen that you like him like that, you know?” Her eyes widen when she realizes what she’s said, and she takes a step back. “Wait, ignore me, I—”

“No,  _ no _ , Mari! No. Really? You do? We’re such idiots.” A slightly hysterical laugh makes its way out of his mouth, hand lowering to squeeze her shoulder. “I do too! Love you, I mean. I have for years.” He leans in and whispers in her ear, “ _ Both _ of you.” 

_ Oh _ . 

Marinette lets out a squeak as her jaw drops, eyes searching his wordlessly. She knew Chat loved Ladybug, but Adrien loving her? It’s so foreign to her that she has to grip his arm to not fall to the floor. 

Nineteen? Pft. Fourteen-year-old Marinette is having a resurrection at the moment. 

“I—good, good,” she’s somehow able to reply, smiling sheepishly up at him. “What does that mean for us?” 

His hand finds hers easily and links their fingers together, blond hair flopping over his forehead as he tilts his head to the side. “Well, I’d really like to take you on a date, if you’re okay with that?” 

“Yeah, of course,” she breathes, sending his hand a light squeeze. “Of course I want that, Adrien.” 

“Cool,” he replies, cheeks tinted as he leans down to press a kiss to her cheek, right next to her lips. 

It takes all six years of her experiences as Ladybug to not freak out right in that moment. As much as she wants to scream into her pillow like she’s fourteen again, she remains calm. 

“So, since we’re not pretending you suck at bowling anymore… Do you want to crush them?” He smiles down at her cheekily, throwing her off for a second. 

“We’re going to take them down, alright.” She winks at him, picks up the heaviest ball from the ball return and flicks the ball down the lane to pick up a spare. 

All three of them watch in awe, slightly flabbergasted. 

“Holy shit,” she hears Nino say. 

“Game on, lovebirds. Let’s see what you’ve got.” Alya stands up to retrieve her ball, and immediately sinks it into the gutter. “Fuck.” 

“Do you want me to teach you too, babe?” Nino wiggles his eyebrows. 

“Fuck off, Lahiffe,” she replies through a laugh. 

For the first few frames, they’re neck and neck, but when the sixth frame hits, Marinette begins a streak that surprises even  _ her _ . She hits a strike for the last four frames of the game, and a spare in the 10th. 

Her score hits 202, with Adrien following at 171, Nino with 145, and Alya with 130. 

“You had to cheat,” Nino exclaims, thrusting a finger at Marinette. “There’s no way ‘Nette over here hit that high of a score. I refuse to believe it.” 

“I didn’t cheat! You’re just mad that I beat you by almost 60 points!” 

“That’s a  _ fallacy _ ! I’m mad that you obviously cheated. Who are you paying to make the pins go down like that, because I want  _ in _ .” 

Alya snorts, flicking Nino in the cheek. “You’re such an idiot, Nino. Mari’s just better, it’s okay to admit it.” 

Nino juts his lower lip out and shakes his head. “Never will I admit defeat! You can’t make me!” 

“You’re so dramatic, man. I can’t.” Adrien laughs, flopping down onto the chair next to Marinette so he can lay his head on her shoulder and curl up against her. “Mari’s just the best at everything, isn’t she?”

“Quit it,” she groans, yet wraps her arm around his neck and runs her fingers through his hair. 

“Make me,” he replies cheekily, blinking up at her owlishly. 

Alya throws her hands up in the air and says, “I already regret instigating this! You’re both hopeless!” 


End file.
